Confidential documents prepared in advance of a two-day EU summit in Brussels have exposed an East-West divide in Europe on climate change, with Germany siding with Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic in their refusal to commit to climate neutrality by 2050.

European Union negotiators struck an agreement late on Tuesday (19 March) to set aside 35% of the bloc’s research funding for climate-friendly technologies, despite ongoing doubts about the overall size of the EU's future budget after Brexit.

EU heads of states are expected to reiterate earlier commitments on climate action when they meet in Brussels later this week, despite growing calls from youths across Europe to step up the fight against global warming, according to a draft EU summit statement seen by EURACTIV.

The production of so-called green hydrogen from wind and solar electricity is seen as a potential game-changer for the transition to a 100% renewable energy system. But getting there will take some time and some intermediary solutions will be needed, says Daan Peters.

Cutting energy use in buildings, ramping up renewable electricity and developing large-scale storage with hydrogen are clear options in bringing energy emissions down to zero by 2050, according to a new study published on Thursday (14 March).

Campaigners have urged the European Commission to reject a proposed aid scheme for the Greek power sector, saying the draft plan will allow “backdoor subsidies” for a new coal-fired power plant in Greece, in violation of the EU’s recently-updated electricity market rules.

Consumer organisations have applauded an EU proposal to restore the familiar A-G energy labelling scale for goods like fridges, TV screens, and washing machines, saying the current ‘A+’ system is confusing for shoppers.

A group of plaintiffs from Estonia, France, Ireland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden, and the US are filing a lawsuit against the European Union on Monday (4 March) to challenge the inclusion of forest biomass in the bloc’s renewable energy directive.

Huge amounts of synthetic fuels generated from renewable energies will be required to fully decarbonise the German economy, according to industry association BDI, which eyes yearly imports of 340 terawatt hours (TW/h) by 2050 – the equivalent of Germany’s entire power fleet.

Setting a target for low-carbon gases such as hydrogen or biomethane is going to be tricky even though the idea is supported by industry, a senior EU official has said, warning against a one-size-fits-all approach.

The European gas industry is on the cusp of a green revolution similar to the one that took place in the electricity sector, with a greater variety of low-carbon gases feeding into the grid at the local level, says Jean-Marc...

As the European Union turns the page on a series of clean energy laws focused on electricity, attention is now turning to decarbonisation in the gas sector, with an upcoming gas package expected in 2020. And the power sector intends to play a central role there too.

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was in Brussels on Thursday (21 February) to take part in one of the climate school strikes that have taken place every week in Belgium since December. EURACTIV.com does not usually publish speeches. But we...

The failure to reverse growth in greenhouse gas emissions means the world is now increasingly dependent on unproven technologies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere in order to avert dangerous climate change, scientists warned on Tuesday (19 February).

EU antitrust Commissioner Margrethe Vestager is the clear favourite to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as the next President of the European Commission, according to the results of a Europe-wide online survey unveiled today (19 February).

A special UN summit scheduled in New York next September will provide “an essential opportunity to mobilise political will to raise global ambition” on climate change, according to a draft EU statement due to be adopted on Monday (18 February).

Britain must entirely get rid of fossil-based natural gas in the coming three decades if the country is to meet its long-term decarbonisation objectives, according to a think-tank close to the ruling Conservative party.

The European Union reached a deal on Tuesday (12 February) on new rules governing import gas pipelines including Russia’s planned Nord Stream 2, but added a special loophole to make sure the German-backed project can go ahead.

European Union lawmakers struck an agreement on Monday (11 February) on green public procurement rules for new buses requiring that local authorities purchase a minimum share of clean vehicles running on gas or electricity by 2025 and 2030.

Natural gas will remain “an important component” of the EU’s energy mix for decades to come, but its role will evolve by the mid-century to become a “complement” to wind and solar power, the EU’s energy chief has said in comments that has ruffled feathers in the industry.

Energy consumption in Europe rose for the third consecutive year in 2017, pulling the EU further away from its 2020 energy efficiency objective, according to official figures published on Thursday (7 February).

The European Commission has backed carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a one of the seven key technologies to enable deep decarbonisation of Europe’s economy by mid-century. But it’s still tangled in bureaucracy when it comes to funding.